Proper apologies have three parts

from Randy Pausch's Last Lecture

Be willing to apologize. Proper apologies have three parts:

1 ) What I did was wrong.

2 ) I’m sorry that I hurt you.

3 ) How do I make it better?

It’s the third part that people tend to forget…. Apologize when you screw up and focus on other people, not on yourself.

~ Randy Pausch ( 1960-2008 )